In a bombshell announcement on Saturday, it was confirmed that Kagiso Rabada had returned an adverse analytical finding for the use of a prohibited substance.
The transgression is believed to have taken place during the SA20, and it’s also the reason why Rabada abruptly left the IPL after initially only stating it was in order to deal with a “significant personal matter”.
Rabada has not played a match since the end of March, while the exact length of his sanction has not been confirmed.
However, it’s understood that Rabada’s ‘ban’ is expected to be within the range of a single month, and some of this looks to have been effectively served already.
It means Rabada should soon be back in action, and there is no threat that it could impact his participation in the World Test Championship final against Australia in June.
Kagiso Rabada apologises
In a statement, CSA said that the “incident is regrettable, however, Rabada has reassured CSA and his fans of his commitment to upholding professional standards and has restated his passion to the sport of cricket and the country he represents with purpose”.
In another statement issued by Rabada through the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA), Rabada said this incident would not “define him”.
“As has been reported, I recently returned to South Africa from participating in the IPL for personal reasons,” Rabada said in his statement. “This was due to my returning an adverse analytical finding for the use of a recreational drug.
“I am deeply sorry to all those that I have let down. I will never take the privilege of playing cricket for granted. This privilege is much larger than me. It goes beyond my personal aspirations.
“I am serving a provisional suspension and I am looking forward to returning to the game I love playing.
“I couldn’t have gone through this alone. I’d like to thank my agent, CSA, and Gujarat Titans for their support. I’d also like to thank SACA and my legal team for their guidance and counsel. Most importantly I’d like to thank my friends and family for their understanding and love.
“Moving forward, this moment will not define me. I will keep doing what I have always done, continuously working hard and playing with passion and devotion to my craft.”
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